We’ve all heard the phrase before: you won’t get along with everyone you meet. This is completely true, inevitable, and unavoidable, and sometimes the same thing goes for the people you don’t get along with. It is important that you realize you’ll have to face people who you aren’t buddy-buddy with, so when you don’t get along with someone at college, see it as a learning experience. Having to face someone you don’t get along with at college can teach you so many important life skills.
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I think one of the most important things that this kind of situation teaches you is how to stand up for yourself. By that I mean you learn how to stand tall, not let yourself pull back from social situations that might lead to an encounter with the person, and you don’t try to make yourself so small so the person doesn’t see you. You acknowledge that your relationship with them will be non-existent, and you move on. You live your life without constantly worrying about your actions in regards to them and you don’t let the situation hold you back.
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Not getting along with someone you have close proximity to can also teach you a very important life lesson, how to separate personal life from professional life. Sure, you might not actually work with the person now, but there will be a point in your life that you will have to work with someone you just don’t like and when that time comes, you can apply what you learned. It’s the little things you learn that will have a big impact: not bad mouthing to people you both know, not making situations like club meetings into awkward turf wars, and most importantly, not sinking to the point where you end up looking like a grudge-holding villain.
Life is full of relationships that you can learn from. A majority of them will be friendships that you will either maintain or hold in fond memories, some will be mentors that you admire and learn from, and some will just be people that you can’t stand or want nothing to do with have to deal with. No one comes into your life without leaving something behind, so turn a negative crossing into an informative interaction and carry those lessons with you to help ensure that you live your best life.